Sonja and Maggie, two rescued lionesses, are finally able to walk on grass for the first time in eight years. They are settling in at their new home at the Born Free Foundation’s Big Cat Rescue and Education Centre at the award winning Shamwari Game Reserve, South Africa. They traveled a monumental 6000 miles across two continents earlier this week to reach their final destination.
These girls spent the first eight years of their lives enduring cruelty as they spent most of their time confined to a circus trailer in appalling conditions at a circus in Germany and suffering injuries as a result of being trained.
The Natuurhulpcentrum, a wild animal rescue and rehabilitation centre in Belguim, stepped in and offered them temporary accommodation in 2013 after being confiscated by German authorities. They received rehabilitation and treatment for their wounds from living in the circus while at the Natuurhulpcentrum.
Their journey to Africa took place this week when they were flown to London on Tuesday, January 20th. They were then flown from Heathrow Airport, London to Johannesburg via Nairobi on the 21st on the inaugural Kenya Airways Dreamliner flight. The last leg of their journey consisted of traveling specially arranged trailers towed by Land Rover Discovery vehicles.
Sonja and Maggie were released straight into their large natural enclosure once they arrived. They were finally introduced to the sights and sounds of Africa.
Shamwari Wildlife Director and vet, Dr. Johan Joubert, and Born Free’s big cat expert Tony Wiles, were present at every step of the journey. Joubert said, ” It was snowing when they left, two days ago, and now they are adapting to a hot African summer’s day. They experienced natural grass and trees today for the first time in their life.”
Wiles is pleased that the lionesses are already growing in confidence in their new environment. He added, ” After spending most of their lives in cramped and squalid conditions, it feels great to be able to offer these girls a safe, happy and natural place to live out the rest of their lives. That’s what it’s all about.”
If only all lions and lionesses could be saved from the throes of abusive circuses and be free to live as they were meant to be.
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I don’t allow my children to attend circuses that use animals. Teaching them compassion from an early age. It’s sick what they do to the animals.
Love this. 🙂
You are spot on! Animal advocates think they got this advertisement pulled from the air. I knew it was a stunt but no one believed me. GoDaddy knew exactly how the animal rights would freak out. The advertisement shows a puppy being thrown out of the back of a truck- please. Then they show a breeder. Hook, line and sinker….everyone fell for it. wake up everyone! Any publicity is better than none!
Tragic
What a wonderful uplifting story of how people came together to save these two lionesses from yrs of abuse. Now they can be free. Sadly, there are still many being abused year after year. It should be illegal to use animals in circuses. I don’t every go to them nor do I take my children to those types of circuses.